


you only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves

by badgerfrog



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Humor, M/M, Married Couple, Tenderness, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-08
Updated: 2020-08-08
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:47:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25777633
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badgerfrog/pseuds/badgerfrog
Summary: Zuko and Sokka have a lazy day in the palace and contemplate the life they've built together.
Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 245





	you only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves

Light filtered through the open door to the balcony, turning everything in Zuko and Sokka's bedroom gold in the way that only late afternoon sunlight can.

Zuko and Sokka were in their bed, limbs entangled. Zuko leaned back agains the headboard and Sokka, half-asleep, had his face in Zuko's lap, one arm around Zuko's waist and the other flung out over the pillow. Zuko, meanwhile, was deep in thought as he looked outside at the half-set sun, one arm around Sokka and the running his other hand through Sokka's hair mindlessly. From outside, they could hear the noises of palace life: farm animals squawking; staff gossiping as they hung laundry out to dry; Fire Nation children singing as they took a tour of the palace; and, if they listened closely enough, Druk's snores from the back garden.

Sokka's eyes fluttered open when he felt something wet on his cheek. When he looked up he saw tears in Zuko's eyes and quickly pushed himself up.

"What's wrong, babe?" he asked, brow furrowed.

Zuko smiled at him softly. "Nothing's wrong," he whispered. "Nothing at all."

"Well, why are you crying then?" he asked, wiping away Zuko's tears with his thumb.

"Because I never thought I would ever be this happy," Zuko whispered.

"Oh," Sokka murmured. His chest filled with warmth. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to Zuko's gently. He leaned away and looked at Zuko — his hair loose and flowing just past his shoulders, his half-smile, his eyes looking even more gold than usual in the afternoon light. He leaned back in and pressed kisses to Zuko's nose, his cheeks, his scar, his eyes; pushed Zuko's hair back so he could kiss his forehead, smooth out the slight wrinkle that had developed a few years after the coronation and a couple quashed rebellions. He pressed his lips to Zuko's again, kissing him deeper this time, then pulled back and drew Zuko towards himself, both arms around him.

"You know I would do anything for you, right?" Zuko whispered up at him.

Sokka looked at him out of the corner of his eye and gave him a sly smile. "Anything?"

Zuko rolled his eyes.

"Yes, stupid," he said. "Anything."

"I would do anything for you," Sokka whispered. "Anything. Even fight Appa."

Sokka laced their fingers together, held up their hands so that their wedding bands glinted in the light. Zuko's other hand found its way to the betrothal necklace clasped around Sokka's neck and smoothed at the band as he smiled at Sokka.

♡

Soon after Zuko was crowned Fire Lord, Sokka had visited him at the palace. Now officially the Water Tribe Ambassador, he had many tales to regale Zuko with as they sat by the turtleduck pond after sunset. They sat there so long that the moon rose in the sky. Zuko had reached out to hand Sokka some breadcrumbs for the turtleducks, but Sokka had stopped talking and looked at Zuko.

"The moon is really bright tonight," he said quietly.

Zuko understood. "You miss her?"

"Of course," Sokka had whispered. "I miss her all the time."

Zuko had put a hand on Sokka's shoulder, and Sokka had looked down at him. (Sokka's recent growth spurt had given him about three inches on Zuko, and it brought him much satisfaction.)

"But I know she would want me to be happy," he said. "And I think I've found somebody who makes me really happy."

Zuko had tried to quiet his heart thumping in his chest. "And who is that?"

"Well." Sokka had smiled slyly, seeing the blush that rose on Zuko's cheeks. "He yells a lot, but he's secretly very nice. And he likes to feed turtleducks. Plus I like to call him jerkbender, just because it pisses him off."

Zuko had rolled his eyes. "Aren't you romantic."

"The most romantic there ever was," Sokka had said, reaching out to put his hand over Zuko's, breadcrumbs and all. Zuko didn't move away — in fact, he had leaned into Sokka, his eyes on the turtleducks but his cheeks very, very red.

When neither of them had let go after about ten minutes, they both laughed and Sokka leaned down to kiss Zuko. They were best friends, but as Zuko had said after they kissed: "I think we'll be even better as boyfriends."

"Agreed," Sokka had said. "But can I wash these breadcrumbs off of my hands?"

The moon continued to shine very brightly for the rest of the night, and the next morning it was still visible in the sky.

The next night, when Zuko had accidentally dropped half of his breadcrumbs into the pond, a small wave had pushed them to the floating turtleducks before the crumbs sank. Sokka had smiled, and Zuko had looked up at the moon and whispered, "Thank you."

♡

When they first started dating, Sokka's trips to the capital of the Fire Nation became a lot more frequent. "Official Water Tribe Ambassador business," he'd say with a shrug when Bato and Hakoda asked, with a raise of their eyebrows, why he visited so often. "You know how it is."

Aang, Katara, Toph, and Suki definitely knew what was happening, though, even if they tried not to let on (Aang was particularly bad at it. "They just look so _happy_ ," he'd say to Katara, eyes big. "I want to be happy with them!") As far as Ursa, Zuko wasn't sure that she had caught on until he saw her with a slight smile, looking at their hands clasped as Sokka told jokes during dinner, after which he realized that he was dumb to think he could have fooled his mother. And Iroh — he _definitely_ knew. Definitely. Zuko knew that his uncle knew way more than he would ever let on. Besides, he saw the slight smile Iroh had whenever Sokka sat with them at dinner during his visits.

But one day, at a state dinner, Sokka made a particularly stupid joke and Zuko couldn't help it — he kissed him (on the cheek — it was very chaste). Aang, sitting at his place as a guest of honor, practically cheered, and Iroh had smiled at his blushing nephew, happy to see him so happy. But the rest of the palace saw the kiss and that was that. Nothing more to say about it, except the palace staff now had an explanation for why Zuko had inexplicably started humming — _humming! —_ songs to himself over the past few weeks as he walked across the royal grounds back to his room from meetings he would very angrily storm out of before.

♡

They had gotten married at ages twenty-one and twenty-two, remarkably young. They both knew that. At the wedding, they ignored whispers from the palace nobles saying it wouldn't last, that it was just an infatuation between two young lovers. There was too much dancing to be done, too much tea to drink, too many conversations to be had, and too many of Sokka's jokes to laugh at to listen to such gossip.

 _Besides_ , Sokka had thought to himself. _We've been together for nearly five years._ _They have no idea_.

When Zuko had pulled out the betrothal necklace from his side table as they lay beside each other in bed one particularly balmy evening, Sokka's eyes had filled with tears as he looked at the pendant, carved painstakingly by Zuko's sure hand with the same emblem as the one on his mother's necklace. And when Zuko held it out to Sokka as he asked, voice trembling, whether Sokka would marry him, how on earth could Sokka say no?

And besides, they figured, once they knew they wanted to spend the rest of their lives together, they knew, and there wasn't any point in putting off a celebration that would confirm what they knew to be true. If they could fight a maniacal fire lord as teenagers and still be okay, surely they would be fine going forward.

And they were.

♡

Before the wedding, Sokka moved all of his belongings into Zuko's palace quarters. Or, rather, what hadn't been moved already — his apartment in Republic City had been practically bare, because he basically lived at the palace anyway. But Zuko's advisors had complained, said it wasn't proper, that even if they were to be husbands, members of the royal family always had their own quarters. Sokka had brushed off their concerns with a wave of his hand.

"Listen, Wan," he'd said, "my family lived in an igloo for my whole life. This bedroom is as big as my entire house was. I'm sure Zuko can manage." Zuko had smirked at Sokka from where he was standing in the doorway, knowing the exaggeration that Sokka was making. "Besides," Sokka continued, looking at Momo placing his many shopping finds on the dresser, "my antique stacking dolls from Ba Sing Se look great in here. Give the quarters you were going to use for me to Druk. He'll like them. " While Wan spluttered and glared in outrage, Zuko had stifled giggles from behind him.

(They didn't end up giving the quarters to Druk. Momo claimed it as his guest suite. When Wan tried to protest, Zuko brushed him off.

"Finders keepers," he'd said to the red-faced Wan, completely deadpan.

Sokka had never been more proud.)

♡

Sokka had often watched Zuko play with Kiyi, warmth filling his chest as his husband gave piggy-back rides and played hide-and-seek with his little sister.

(And he would laugh heartily when he saw Zuko running around the palace frantically, crawling under tables and asking the guards if any of them had seen Kiyi.

"Cheater," he'd said one time, shaking his head in mock disappointment, after a particularly distressed Zuko had asked just about every guard he'd seen for Kiyi's whereabouts.

Zuko had tugged at his sleeve, panic in his eyes. "What are we going to tell my mom if we can't find Kiyi?"

They eventually found her, but only after Sokka declared an emergency ("What do you _mean_ I can't do that, Wan? I'm Husbandlord. Sound the alarm") and got every guard, staffer, begrudging noble, and yes, even Wan himself on the case. Kiyi had been buried beneath clothes in a laundry basket, sound asleep. Zuko couldn't even find it in himself to scold her after she complained about being woken up.)

Later that day, when he asked Zuko offhandedly at dinner if Zuko had ever wanted kids, Zuko had nodded slowly.

"Yeah," he'd said, his eyes lighting up. Then he'd frowned.

"What if I wouldn't be a good dad? I didn't exactly have the best example," he'd said, pushing his food around on his plate.

"Hey." Sokka placed a hand over his and nudged him until he looked up. "You're not like your dad. I've known you for nine years. I've lived with you for seven. I've been married to you for four. I know you." He'd squeezed Zuko's hand, looked into his eyes. "You're nothing — _nothing_ — like him. You helped Aang bring him to justice. You made the right choices and righted your wrongs, even after being taught your whole life that your morals were a sign of weakness. You brought peace to a war-torn nation. You've even managed to accomplish the incredible feat of being married to me." Zuko giggled.

Sokka continued. "Even when everyone has expected that you'd turn out the same, you've been nothing but kind. You are your mother's son and your uncle's nephew." Zuko smiled.

"But more importantly," Sokka continued, "you're Zuko." He smiled. "I'm sure you can handle raising a kid if you set your mind to it. You would be an amazing dad."

They had finished their dinner, Sokka not cracking the amount of jokes he usually did. He could tell Zuko was deep in thought. Later, when they walked across the gardens on their way to the bedroom, the night air had been cool, but with a warm breeze. Sokka was humming quietly to himself, swinging his and Zuko's intertwined hands, when Zuko had stopped Sokka by the turtleduck pond and looked up at him.

"We're already a family," he whispered, reaching up to run his hand through Sokka's hair. "You are my family. But—" he glanced over at the turtleducks in the pond, mother and baby.

He remembered sipping tea with his uncle, time and time again. He remembered him and his mother sitting by the pond. His uncle speaking in riddles that, once Zuko unwound them, made more sense than anything his father had ever said. His mother teaching him kindness, even when trapped in a cruel world. His uncle showing him who he could be. His mother, always in the back of his mind, reminding him of who he wanted to be. Of who he was. Both of them, showing him what a good parent is like.

Sokka's words to him. _You are your mother's son and your uncle's nephew_.

His father wasn't his only example. He could be a father and be like his mother and his uncle. Because he was Zuko; and he had, time and time again, chosen his own path.

He took a deep breath. "But it would be nice if our family got a little bigger, right?"

Sokka had looked down at him, holding Zuko's face in his hands. He nodded, his heart full.

♡

A little less than a year later, they had adopted Izumi when she was two. Despite not being a biological relation to either of them, she had Zuko's seriousness and Sokka's inquisitive mind — quite a formidable combination for a two-year-old.

Zukko wanted to put the crib in their room, despite Wan's protests that it wasn't proper and that they had nursemaids and an empty bedroom for Izumi. (Wan was basically the only advisor who still tried to argue with Zuko and Sokka; the rest of them were tired after years of Sokka joking away their concerns and Zuko learning to do so as well. At this point, even Wan's arguments were starting to get weaker).

"We'll be fine, Wan," Zuko said. "It'll be her bedroom when she's older. For now, just give it to Druk. Momo has antagonized him enough already."

Wan sputtered.

Zuko grinned. "Has anyone ever told you that you need to relax, Wan? Like, seriously. I'm saying that and I'm probably the least relaxed person ever."

"I tell him, pretty much every single day," Sokka said, clapping Wan's shoulder. "But, seriously, Wan, we'll be fine." He slung his arm around Zuko. "If we need privacy—" he raised his eyebrows "—we can use Momo's guest bedroom. I'm sure he won't mind."

Zuko didn't even try to hide his giggles as Wan's face turned pink.

So after Wan quite ungracefully gave up for what had to be the millionth time, Zuko sat and watched with Izumi on his lap as Sokka twisted and screwed wooden parts together. (Sokka had waited until the last minute, but insisted it was fine because he would be able to put it together in less than an hour. Much to Zuko's chagrin, he wasn't wrong.)

Izumi slept in her crib much of the time, but some nights she wouldn't stop crying until her dads put her between them and snuggled with her until she fell asleep. Eventually, after waking up bleary-eyed too many times, Sokka decided that Izumi would sleep in their bed with them every night, in order to avoid any unplacatable crying scenarios. Zuko didn't protest. Rising with the sun and having a young daughter were not exactly the best pair for his sleep schedule.

Whenever Zuko saw Sokka whispering to Izumi, no doubt formulating some sort of prank on her other dad, bounding across the lawn with her as they giggled, or when he saw her playing with Kiyi, squabbling over a game they made up and hugging not two minutes later, he felt an overwhelming warmth in his chest, one that didn't have the rage of fire but was much more powerful. And whenever Sokka saw Zuko with Kiyi on his shoulders and Izumi in his arms, showing them how to feed the turtlecrabs without getting their fingers snapped, how to pet Druk gently, or bandaging up Izumi's scrapes, smoothing her hair and making silly faces at her until she grinned, he smiled so wide he felt he would burst.

♡

They had known each other for twelve years now. They had lived together for ten. They had been married for seven. They had had a daughter for two. Their wedding bands still gleamed in the afternoon sun, even after so long. (Sokka made sure to polish them every week, yawning and smoothing a cloth over them while Zuko took his morning shower. As Zuko towelled off, he would remark to Sokka that he took almost as good care of the rings as he did his sword.)

On the wall above Sokka's many trinkets hung paintings. One of them feeding turtleducks by the bright light of the moon. Another of them on their wedding day, leaning against each other as they danced. Sokka standing seriously with Momo on his shoulder and Zuko beside him, Zuko's delight barely contained. One from just after they adopted Izumi, Zuko cradling her while Sokka sang her a lullaby. Ursa showing Sokka how to feed the turtleducks. Sokka holding a struggling Kiyi while Zuko laughed. Sokka playing pai sho and sipping tea with Iroh, illuminated by the setting sun. Sokka and Zuko riding Appa, Zuko clutching on to Sokka. ("I'm getting too old for this," he'd said, frowning, after Sokka had made fun of him. "You're twenty-three," an incredulous Sokka had responded. "I have a crease in my forehead," Zuko replied stubbornly. "And, if you don't stop, soon I'll have gray hairs too." Sokka gave it up after that.) Gran-Gran scolding Zuko as Katara smirked in the background. Sokka passed out on the bed after drinking too much cactus juice, Zuko sitting beside him, grinning and holding up Izumi sticking her tongue out. Bato and Hakoda showing Zuko how to carve whalebone. Them riding Druk, Sokka screaming and holding on to Zuko. (Sokka had tried to burn the painting after no one believed him when he insisted it was artistic license that made him look like that, but Zuko had used his most Fire Lord voice and told him not to burn the painting, so on the wall it stayed.) Them holding hands beneath the full moon. A painting of Sokka drawing Zuko and Druk. Them and Izumi in the South Pole, Izumi so bundled up she was barely visible. Them walking through the garden, swinging Izumi between them as she giggled.

Sokka and Zuko's hands were intertwined as they sat leaning back, Zuko's head on Sokka's shoulder. Their rings glinted in the now-setting sun. Zuko turned slightly and looked at the dresser.

"You know," he said, a small smile lighting up his face, "those antique stacking dolls from Ba Sing Se look really good."

"Of course they do," Sokka said. "My taste is impeccable."

Zuko squinted at the dresser. A confused look crossed his face.

"Is it just me," he said slowly, "or does the biggest one look kind of like Wan?"

"Of course not! Why on earth— wait." Sokka stopped suddenly. "It does."

They looked at each other, eyes serious.

"Momo," Zuko whispered.

Sokka rubbed his thumb on his forehead. If he wasn't careful, he was going to start prematurely creasing like Zuko. "Of course."

Then they started laughing and they couldn't stop.

"It's all your fault," Zuko wheezed. "You thought that teaching Momo how to paint would be a good idea. And now he's messed up one of your priceless antiques."

"I actually got the set for a very good price," Sokka countered. "It is one-of-a-kind, though." He frowned, and Zuko giggled.

Sokka turned to look at Zuko. "You didn't ever think you would be this happy, huh?" he asked softly.

Zuko shook his head, but his eyes were shining. It wasn't the afternoon light that was making them bright, either — it was just him. Happy.

"Well," Sokka said, leaning in to kiss him, "you should probably get used to it."

♡

**Author's Note:**

> if you've made it all the way through, thank you so much for reading! this is my first fic, so i'd love any comments, positive or negative :D idk how much i want to write in the future but i love zukka and feedback would help make any future fics better!!!
> 
> also: i'm thinking of maybe doing more chapters where the moments in the paintings/memories are more fleshed out as their own chapters? if you'd like to see that, let me know!


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